Surviving

[gatewaytotokyo]

Kit looked back at Elle with a raised eyebrow. "Botany? Nah, I just love climbin' the things." And with that she hooked her fingers in a nook above her head, placed a foot on one of the gnarls and started to climb. It only took her a few moments to get up to the first branch then she looked down at Elle and grinned. "It looks like the upper branches go above the other trees, I'm going to have look if you don't mind waiting for a bit."  

[Skrapz]

Elle had to raise her voice a little, "Just be careful! If you fall from that height, I don't think me catching you is gonna make much of a difference!" She leaned against a nearby tree and watched, a grin plastered across her face.  

[gatewaytotokyo]

Kit scrambled up the branches, quick as any monkey. She disappeared from view for a few minutes, then she was back, all smiles as she clambered down out of the tree. "There's a perfect place, higher up, to build a platform if we wanted to." she said as she started down the trunk. "It could be a meeting place for our... what you call it, 'resistance'?"  

[Skrapz]

Elle rubbed the back of her neck, "All the way up there? I don't know if I can climb a tree that well. And besides, starting tomorrow we'll be so busy that we'll never be able to get out here anyway." She sighed, "We've got to think of some way we can get out here, and up there." She pointed for emphasis.  

[gatewaytotokyo]

A big grin appeared on Kit's face. "Leave that to me, I've built my fair share of tree hideouts." she said looking up at the monster tree again. "It'll take me a couple weeks to get everything I need then put it together though and without getting caught. That's going to be the challenge." She looked at Elle, a mischievous look on her face and a glint to her eye that definitely meant fun and a bit of danger.  

[Skrapz]

"Wow," Elle said, mostly to herself, "Day one and we're already doing things we're not supposed to. I like it." She glanced at her watch, "Crap, lunch ended more than fifteen minutes ago. We gotta get back before they notice."  

[gatewaytotokyo]

Kit snickered as she listened to Elle. "Fun ain't it?" she asked but didn't get an answer as Elle looked at her watch. "Damn, we best run then." she said as she took off back down the way they'd come.  

[Skrapz]

Elle knelt to tie her shoe and grinned, "Fine by me. Think you can keep up?" Without waiting for an answer Elle shot off down the remaining trail, laughing at the wind slapping her face and low branches tugging at her hair.  

[gatewaytotokyo]

Kit laughed then saved her breath for catching up with Elle and ran shoulder to shoulder with her until they had to slow down in the courtyard. "Whew, that was fun." she panted grinning at Elle. "Where'd you think we're suppose to go?" she asked looking around the yard at a few other girls walking around.  

[Skrapz]

Elle wiped the sweat from her forehead and also looked around. "I'm not quite sure..." She noticed a group heading for a large building. She checked her brochure, "According to this map, that building over there is some sort of Auditorium. My van driver said there was an orientation lecture the first day." She paused and scoffed, "Heh, orientation. Bad choice of words."  

[gatewaytotokyo]

Kit groaned. "Ugh, I hate orientations, they put me to sleep. I think I'll skip out on it, I'd rather get started on setting up that platform anyways." she grumbled rubbing the back of her head then running her hand through her sweat damp, short hair making bits of it stick up.  

[Skrapz]

"Okay, you go scavenging. I wanna find out what I'm in for here." Elle tightened her grip on her backpack and took a deep breath. She waved at Kit and headed for the fast-filling hall.  

[gatewaytotokyo]

"Let me know if I miss anything really important." Kit called after Elle, laughing at the joke. She watched Elle heading for the auditorium for a bit then she headed for their cabin. She dumped out her rucksack on her bunk and pulled it on her back before going to find some wood, nails and a hammer for her project. She headed for the cabin that no one was allowed to go in because of the leaks. She was hoping that since the orientation was going on that all the staff would be there to be introduced to the campers. She looked up at the celing and scowled at the damp wood overhead. "I'm better off making a rope ladder." she grumbled to herself. "The problem is going to be finding enough rope and enough wood for the platform. she mused to herself as she looked under the bunks and grinned at the sight of the slats holding up the matress and began to remove three from each of them so that there was still enough to hold it up but only if there was no more weight put on it. She stowed the wood in her rucksack and went off to find a storage or work shed to get some nails and a hammer. If she couldn't find a hammer she could make due with a rock.  

[Skrapz]

Elle sat on a wooden bench near the back of the auditorium. She observed the other girls interacting, and mourned at the sight of so many people suffering from bigotry and intolerance. She swallowed her emotions and waited patiently for the lecture to begin.